LOOKING FOR SIGNS OF HOPE October 16, 2011 THE Eurozone is in dire need of a quick capital injection, perhaps €2 trillion, says economist Nouriel Roubini. Roubini is not the only economist alarmed by the Eurozone’s banking system. Even outgoing ECB head Jean-Claude Trichet said recently that the systemic crisis must be decisively tackled, as the interconnectedness threatens the Eurozone’s financial stability, and [...]
Rajaratnam sentenced to 11 years in prison October 13, 2011 Raj Rajaratnam, the US former hedge fund tycoon at the centre of the biggest Wall Street insider trading case in decades, has been sentenced to 11 years in prison in one of the most severe sentences of its kind. Rajaratnam, 54, founder of the Galleon Group hedge fund that reached $7bn (£4.5bn) at its peak, [...]
QE3 is still on the table, Fed minutes show October 12, 2011 A CONTROVERSIAL third phase of quantitative easing could still be on the cards in the US, it emerged last night. Two of the Fed’s 10-person committee “said that current conditions and the outlook could justify stronger policy action” than the central bank’s Operation Twist, the minutes to its September meeting revealed. Operation Twist – which [...]
Pimco beefs up exposure to mortgages October 12, 2011 THE PIMCO Total Return Fund, the world’s largest bond fund, increased its exposure to mortgages in September and showed a dramatic drop in cash equivalents and money market securities for the same period, according to its website yesterday. Pacific Investment Management Co, which has $1.3 trillion in assets under management, increased exposure to mortgages in [...]
FTSE rises as miners gain and euro hope pushes bank stock October 12, 2011 STRONG miners and banks boosted Britain’s top shares yesterday, keeping the index on an upward tilt, underpinned by progress in tackling the Eurozone sovereign debt crisis and recent upbeat US data. The mood, already elevated by hopes European leaders will unveil new measures to solve the crisis by the month’s end, was further lifted when [...]
Celebrate Big Food: Our diet is cheaper, richer and more nutritious than ever before October 12, 2011 BIG Food is widely regarded as the polar opposite of good food. Big food companies, we are told by campaigners and celebrity chefs, produce poor quality, waistline-busting, environment-wrecking, small-farmer-bankrupting products. The supermarkets allegedly destroy communities to sell rubbish to zombified shoppers. Industrial agriculture gives us nutrient-lite, flavourless, chemical-soaked food produced in a shockingly wasteful manner. [...]
The sherry bar that’s rocking South London’s food scene October 12, 2011 TONIGHT, José Pizarro is a rock star in his own restaurant. He’s shaking everyone’s hand, or rather, everyone’s shaking his hand. Hardeep Singh Kohli, the Scottish Sikh presenter, and his chums are settling in round a pillar to order and are giving him the pats on the back. It could be because today the Bermondsey [...]
FTSE flat after Slovak vote blow October 12, 2011 The FTSE 100 was flat this morning after Slovak lawmakers rejected a plan to expand the Eurozone rescue fund and the US earnings season kicked off with disappointing results. Slovakia’s decision rattled world markets as the plan — which would see Greece saved from economic abyss through new loans — is central to hopes that [...]
A sound pound is nowhere to be found October 11, 2011 ALPARI JAMES HUGHES The pound has come back into focus at the start of the week after last week’s surprise announcement of further asset purchases by the Bank of England. Monday’s fall in sterling was in part due to MPC policymakers suggesting that the extra £75bn of QE announced last week could well be the [...]
Hot topics this week October 10, 2011 FITNESS & DIET EXPERT BAREFOOT running, toning shoes, green tea… there’s a lot that’s being debated at the moment. In this week’s column, I’m separating the truth from the false on some current hot topics. BAREFOOT RUNNING IS BETTER FOR YOU THAN RUNNING IN TRAINERS: FALSE This is probably the most hotly debated exercise topic [...]